We Both Go Down Together
by Errie Wyvern
Summary: A baby in the belly and an empty house on Ikitsuki island, Fuu finds out that things are rarely as simple as she wants them to be.
1. we both go down together

-1

_Meet me on my vast veranda_

_My sweet untouched Miranda_

_And while the seagulls are crying_

_We fall but our souls are flying_

The sun broke over the long green grass and low thatched roof on an isolated cliff of Ikitsuki island. The soft crash of the ocean below the cliffs echoed over the landscape, still in the golden morning. A small animal crawled down the rough wooden planks of the walls and slipped through a crack, cooing softly in a young girl's ear.

Fuu stretched her skinny sixteen-year-old arms over her head and swung her thin legs over the low bed, her feet skittering and her toes grasping for her sandals along the floor. She made a low whine in the back of her throat when she got a splinter in her big toe for her trouble and forced herself to sit up to take it out.

Maneuvering around her swollen belly, she tilted her foot to the side and squinted her eyes to see the splinter. Using her long fingernails as tweezers, she grasped the slight piece of wood and tugged on it gently, her breath hitching a little at the sting. In her silence, she could almost imagine that there was another body in the bed, a lean form of a samurai. When she turned her little head, though, all she saw was her own hair and an unused blanket tucked neatly over a futon filled with dry grass. She tilted her head and her thick hair filled her vision.

Standing up, she shrugged off the open robe, it was too small to be able to tie over her stomach. She used to wear the rough orange kimono around town before she grew too large. Her pink one was folded and wrapped in tissue, she couldn't bear to look at it. It just brought back memories of a strong form over her, quick hands opening the lurid pink silk to touch her budding little breasts…she shuddered just thinking about it and told herself it was from disgust.

After all, that yielding pink silk was what got her in this mess in the first place.

---

After a small amount of difficulty, Fuu managed to tie the lemon yellow obi over her deep olive kimono. She smoothed out the fabric and Momo chirped an approval before he snuggled down in between her soft, ripe breasts. Fuu gave him a small smile and rubbed her fingertip over his little head. He kept watch during the night and slept in her shirt during the day. She appreciated that.

Tucking a large woven basket under her arm, she stuck her worn pink purse in her obi and pushed open the door with her shoulder. Her smooth wooden sandal caught gently on the frame for a moment before she shook it loose. Tucking her foot neatly back into the sandal, she thought for a moment that her feet were getting bigger, they were dangerously close to the back of the shoe.

She shuffled her way down the worn path, small puffs of dust in her wake. The tall grass got taller and gave way to the forest of sunflowers that she'd run though on her first time on the island. She still couldn't help but look around, expecting a scythe-wielding villain to be wearing a sunflower mask. She picked up her pace and waddled quickly into town, almost tripping over stones twice. It had only been seven months since that encounter, not enough time for paranoia to really die.

A few of the women in town had taken pity on Fuu in her husbandless state, (abandoned, she'd told them, by the bastard that had promised to marry the orphaned girl after she gave him her virginity) and had somewhat frostily agreed to give her enough rice and vegetables to keep her alive, and they had given her a fishing pole and a basket to put oysters and crabs into. The daughter of Kasumi Seizou-san was no more welcome than the man himself, it seemed, no matter how hapless she had been. But the island was the only place she could go to, the shack the only sure protection she had.

A tall, thin woman by the name of Utada stood near the entrance of the town with a small basket full of vegetables. Fuu awkwardly held out her basket and Utada silently placed a big daikon radish, a small package of dried potato skins, four small carrots and one small eggplant neatly inside. She whispered, "Ayumi-san is up ahead, near the large tree, with the rice." Fuu nodded and bows as much as she could, thanking Utada profusely.

It was always like that. The women would often switch positions and goods. Sometimes Fuu would get the vegetables first, sometimes the rice. The one by the entrance always had the directions to the next woman. A few times, there had been directions to a third woman, who would graciously give Fuu a few eggs or a part of a chicken. She always thanked them with everything she had, but the promises to pay them back had dwindled as the months passed.

Ayumi was a few inches taller than Fuu but was broader of hip and chest. She set a good sized bag of rice in Fuu's basket, pushing the more delicate vegetables off to the side. "Hana-san has a gull and a few eggs for you farther ahead, closer to the docks. She's wearing a deep blue kimono, she's very delicate looking." Ayumi avoided her eyes and didn't respond to her profuse gratitude.

Fuu shuffled further into the town, one hand on her swollen stomach. She didn't know how much longer she would be able to keep walking to town. Her feet were hurting something terrible and she wanted nothing more than to stretch out her back, but she kept walking. She didn't want to make any of the women wait. They were kind enough already, she could barely expect them to wait around for her while she popped the soreness out of her back.

Hana was indeed waiting by the docks, patiently adjusting the gull and a small bag in her arms. She gently placed the dead bird on top of all of her other purchases and she tucked the eggs gently in beside that. "I'm...I'm sorry that it's not cleaned already, Fuu-san, but I thought it might be easier to carry if it still had the feathers…" She stumbled a little in her speech and looked at the ground.

Fuu smiled gently at her, "The gull is more than I had hoped. Your kindness has helped to feed me and my little one for another few days at least." She rubbed her stomach fondly.

Hana looked up shyly and said, "Ano, Fuu-san, if you don't mind, I wouldn't mind bring your food up to you for the last few months of your pregnancy. It's too much for you to walk around in your condition."

Fuu was struck. "That is more than I had dreamed, Hana-sama. Your kindness is touching. I would greatly appreciate your help." She bowed as deeply as she could and started her way back to her hut when she heard a voice.

"Have you seen a loud-mouth flat-chested girl in a pink kimono in this area recently?"

Fuu turned to stare at Mugen, who only looked at her in disbelief. He looked at her swollen stomach and her basket of food and then at her wide brown eyes. They were silent, staring at each other for a heartbeat, before Mugen reached over and took her basket of food. He put a hand on her back and propelled her forward slightly.

"Where're you living?"

"My father's old house."

"Then that's where I'm staying too."

She shot him a dirty look but didn't protest.

They got some stares as they walked through town. Fuu looked down, ashamed, as Mugen just ignored them as he always did and urged her to go faster by means of a slight pressure on her back. She complied, but tripped a little at the newer pace. Mugen sighed and she braced herself for an insult or a rough hold on her arm as he dragged her back to her house, but he only slowed down and evened his pace with hers.

When they were alone in the sunflower forest, he glanced over at her stomach and up at the clouds. "Is it mine?"

She glanced away, "You know it is."

He shifted the basket. "Ah."

When they got back to the shack, she took the basket from him as he opened the door and followed him inside. The warmth of the sun was replaced by the chilly interior of her home, and she had never felt the furry body of Momo as strongly as she did then. She placed her sandals next to Mugen's geta by the front door and set the basket on the table. He was standing in the middle of the room and looking at her, "What now?"

Fuu avoided his gaze as she said, "Now we look for crabs and oysters and fish." She grabbed the basket and the fishing pole and toed her shoes back on before walking out of the door.

There was a heavy pause before she heard the clatter of the steel-enforced geta following her. She led him to the narrow path that led down the cliff to the small beach that was there. She picked her way carefully through the sharp rocks and grit, walking up to where the tide did not reach and placing her sandals on the rocks. Mugen did the same. She handed him the pole and said, "See if you can catch anything. I usually can't, but I suppose that this is just a bad area."

Bad area his ass, he'd crawled up onto this beach almost eight months before and saved her life, and he was quite aware that he was very near the spot where he'd almost died. He wondered if he could see the blood stain in the sand if he looked close enough. There were fish in that water, he'd swum next to them. He cast the line and watched her out of the corner of his eye. She looked ridiculous like that, all fat and trying to bend over. He couldn't help but think of the pleasing way the silk clung to her bottom, but he wisely kept his mouth shut.

She came back an hour later with a few small crabs she'd found caught in tide pools, three clams and five oysters. He looked down at her feet to see a few dabs of orange-tinged blood on her feet. She didn't appear to feel the sting, or maybe she was used to it, as she raised an eyebrow at the four fish he had speared on his sword.

He shrugged, "Practice, I suppose."

She just glanced up at him before saying, "Let's go back, I'm hungry." and turning back to pick her way to her sandals. She tossed him his geta as he shouldered his sword and the fishing pole.

"Do you want me to carry the basket?"

Another glance and she slipped into the familiar smoothness of her shoes. "No, I'll manage."

"Ah."

It was awkward, the entire situation was awkward. He didn't know what to do. He couldn't very well be rude to her, she was carrying his child. So he tried questions instead.

Keeping a steady eye on her as she slowly made her way up the path, he asked, "What ever happened to the old man that was here?"

She glanced down at him. "He died before I came back. One of the women from the village told me that they tossed his body into the ocean from a boat and left the house to rot. They'd do the same to me, she told me." She stopped for a moment, winded.

When they pressed on, he said, "Well they wouldn't dare now."

They didn't say anything else until he was cleaning the fish and she was plucking the gull.

"When did you know?" He had his back turned towards her, his sword out and a small pile of fish guts next to him.

She stared at the back of his head. "I had traveled just past Nagasaki, I was working in a restaurant again. I started to feel sick, so the wife of the cook came over to look at me. She felt my stomach and did some weird thing with a rabbit and told me that I was pregnant. They gave me a bonus and my last payment and told me to leave. That was a few months ago." She let another few handfuls of feathers fall into a little basket. "The wife took pity on me and gave me an orange kimono, it was bigger than my pink one, but it was old and stained and patched in some places. She gave me this obi too, and told me that it'd be enough to get me through the first few months." Another handful. "And then I came here, because this was the only place I could think of where I wouldn't get kicked out or have to work for."

He grunted.

Her dark eyes stared at him again, only this time he turned around and met her gaze. She blinked once and said, "I missed you."

He scowled and turned back to his work.

There was silence for another half an hour while they finished their respective works. Fuu neatly sliced the feet and head off of the gull and speared it on a stick. She settled it over the fire in the corner that she had stoked as soon as she and Mugen had come back from fishing.

"So what have you been doing?"

He glanced at her, not surprised by the question. He laid the last fish flat on a woven mat of dried seaweed and shrugged, "Not much. Kohza came after me, the bitch, so I killed her this time. She was really irritating me, hiring men to hunt me down. She tried to kiss me before I stabbed her through the stomach. Jin didn't show his ugly face at all. I earned some money killing some people for this warlord…I killed some more people just because they looked strong, and then I decided to find you because I was bored and it was something to do. So here I am."

She'd be looking at him in a steady manner when he started talking, and then she asked, "Are you going to leave again? If you were, I'd prefer that you do it now. You could be a large inconvenience if I started to rely on you and you left suddenly."

He stood up and lazed over to her, dominating her with his shadow. He leaned over, pressing her back against the wall as stared deep into her eyes. "If I'm leaving, you're coming with me."

She stopped, suddenly irritated. "The hell I will. I have a house here, with lots of land and plenty of food. Why would I leave it to go vagabonding with you? I'm about to have a CHILD, idiot, and children need homes."

He scowled at her. "Then I'm staying."

She raised her eyebrow at him.

He sighed, suddenly awkward. He straightened up and put his arms behind his head. "I'm not saying that I own you, idiot, or that I own the kid. I'm not saying that you need me either. You got this far on your own and I know you could do all of it by yourself if you had to. I'm just saying that I want to be here, with you, and you can't make me leave."

She was silent for a moment before she nodded. "Then you can stay."

He growled at her, "What did I just say, ugly! You couldn't make me leave if you wanted me to!"

She stood up, bracing her hand against the wall. "Oh yes I could! I could make you leave right now if I wanted!"

He laughed, "With that big belly? I'd like to see you try."

She lunged at him and he easily caught her wrists. She growled at him and he smiled back. Fuu pushed up against him, but Mugen just pressed her into a wall. She realized his sudden closeness and remembered the feel of his body. A bright cherry blush flooded her face as she felt the area between her legs dampen. She quickly looked away at the gull, to see the skin crispy brown, almost getting ready to blacken.

"Ah!" She yelped, pulling away from Mugen's strong grip.

He let her go easily and watched her pull the bird from the fire. She tried to pull it off and almost dropped the entire thing. She wound up comically waving the entire stick around to cool off the fowl. When she could touch it without burning herself, she pulled a leg off.

She glanced over at him and said, "Dinner's done."

He had just been waiting for an invitation.

---

So that's it for now, I hope to write the second chapter tomorrow!

The lyrics at the top are from the Decembrists, We Both Go Down Together. Wonderful song, I love that entire band. This is my first Samurai Champloo story, please let me know if I'm getting it right!


	2. here i dreamt i was an architect

-1

_you, my soiled teenage girlfriend  
or are you furrowed like a lioness  
and we are vagabonds  
we travel without seatbelts on  
we live this close to death _

The days that followed settled into a stressful, uneasy pattern. Fuu found herself sullen and guarded around Mugen, whom she used to banter with almost playfully. He would try to prod her into one of their loud arguments, but she would just turn her back and stay silent.

She tried to chalk it up to her pregnancy, but couldn't quite make it.

---

One the fifth night since Mugen's arrival, he finally got tired of sleeping on the floor.

"Move over."

She stared up at him, holding her faded orange kimono closed. "What did you say?"

He made an annoyed noise deep in his throat, a half formed word stuck in his sneering expression. "I said move over. I'm tired to sleeping on the ground and that's a big bed you have there."

Her eye twitched, but this was Mugen and she knew that if she didn't comply now, he'd likely just toss her completely out of bed and take up the whole thing for himself. Of course, Mugen hadn't been acting like Mugen since he saw her stomach, and now she wasn't sure of WHAT he would do. Her stomach clenched as she pulled herself over to the neat side of the bed and pressed her front against the wall. The thinning straw mattress sunk a little as Mugen silently climbed in next to her.

If silence was a person, or had a personality, Fuu imagined that he was pressing himself between Mugen and her. She could almost feel the cold, heavy hands of silence on her thighs, his leg between her knees, his hot and slick tongue against the back of her neck.

And when Mugen spoke, Silence let her go as if she burned him and she could not say she was sorry.

"So…can I touch it?"

She whipped her head and gave him a wide eyed stare. "WHAT!"

He was lounging in her warm spot, and she'd never seen someone look so comfortably awkward before. His face was turned away from her at an angle, and he was looking at her from the corner of his eye. "Your stomach, idiot. Can I…touch it?"

She pulled the blankets closer around her and screeched, "NO!" and whipped her head around, huddling so close to the wall that she wouldn't be surprised if she had a small army of splinters in her forehead in the morning.

Sleep was in league with Silence and the Devil, she was sure of it. Both seemed to weigh down at her at once, and it took her a few hours of listening to the silence and knowing that neither of them were going to be able to catch the elusive vixen of sleep until she said something.

Tossing her blanket back, she huffed and shouted, "FINE. Go ahead and touch it, you pervert."

He was on her faster than anything she'd ever seen. His entire top half was splayed over her stomach, his ear pressed against the bulge and one hand near her breasts, one near her…

But neither hand moved from her stomach and Mugen slowly felt the kicking of his child and detected a heartbeat that was just out of alignment with her own. He pressed his forehead and lips of her stomach and closed his eyes. She couldn't help but gently run one hand through his shaggy hair and gaze at him in wonderment. This was the first time she'd ever seen Mugen act gently, like her stomach was some overfilled balloon that was going to break open if he pressed too hard.

He brought himself up to rest next to her, one large palm pushing open the already loose kimono under the blanket to feel the smooth skin underneath. She hadn't been modest with him when he arrived, she still had to take off one robe to don another and she couldn't really care about what he thought of her body. Let him see what one night of farewell had done to her. She had felt, rather than seen, his eyes on her every morning as she dressed, but no insult or compliment had been tossed her way. He was almost indifferent.

Now, however, he seemed obsessed with it. He tucked her head under his chin and she sniffed delicately. He had bathed recently, probably that day. She raised her eyebrows but couldn't resist snuggling further into his warmth. His heavy hand was rougher than that of Silence, but seemed to fill up the soundless void well enough.

Sleep was kind and claimed them soon afterwards.

---

Things seemed to simplify for Fuu after that. The ice had been broken between Mugen and her and they communicated better, meaning that they did at all. Hana brought up food every three days and Mugen went down every day to catch seafood.

After a terrifying bought of slight food poisoning from a bad oyster, Fuu was delirious and kept asking for castilla for her father, and she even cried once or twice for her mother. Mugen stayed up for two nights and a day with her, holding her over the privy and forcing water down her throat. The morning that her fever broke, she didn't remember any of it.

She was bedridden for a week, forced by Mugen. He was gruff but kind in his reasons. Well, as kind as Mugen could get without it killing him. "You almost died, stupid bitch, and if you die, then so does my kid! Now sit your fat ass on the damn bed and let me do everything."

As she got closer to her time, Fuu started to get worried. She hadn't felt much of the baby lately, at least for the past few days. She would sit on her bed and hold her stomach and cry, fearing for the worst.

If Mugen smelled the salt in the air or saw the redness of her eyes, he didn't comment.

But he did bring a doctor the day after he caught her with her head bowed over her belly.

---

The doctor had inquired after her health and her pregnancy and her eating habits. She described the rich food she had eaten at the tea house, the pork and shrimp and sushi.

He nodded in approval.

He eyed her warily when she mentioned her meager diet of the past months and the recent bout of bad oyster. She waved her hands around and said, "No, no, Mugen here kept me well, from what he tells me. Flushed it out of my system with as much water as he could pour into me."

The doctor, Takahashi-sama, looked at Mugen with surprise. The vagabond had snorted and muttered, "What? Back when I was a pirate, that sort of thing happened all the time. Never happened to a pregnant bitch, though, not that I saw. I just did for her what I did for my men and look, she's not dead now, is she?" He gestured at her lazily before stomping out, his pride stung.

Takahashi leaned in close to Fuu, keeping his voice down. "Fuu-san, I didn't want to say this with such a violent man around, but I would advise that you don't get your hopes up for this child. The diet you've suggested has been lacking in the proper nutrients for a growing baby. It might be stillborn, but that won't affect your chances for another child. If this one is born alive, it will be very weak. I suggest that you find these foods," he handed her a list, "and eat as many as you can before the baby arrives and while it nurses. These will strengthen your breast milk to help the child grow stronger. Again, Fuu-san, I'm very sorry."

He bowed his head as she looked over the list. She furrowed her brow and whispered harshly, "Most of these are out of season, and costly besides! Is this one imported? I'd have to travel to Edo to get this one…" She sighed. "Mugen isn't going to be happy when he sees this."

And indeed Mugen was not.

The doctor had fled the house in terror, shreds of his wide brimmed hat following him. There were rough, r-rolling insults following him as far as they would carry, and then a deafening silence.

While Mugen stormed down onto the beach to take out his wild anger on the remnants of a church, Fuu was calm.

She heard the wild cracks of breaking wood, heard the pained shouts of the father of her child echoing off the cliffs. It was eerie in how much it simply sounded like the howling wind.

She stared out of her window and said softly, "Did you lose your child too, Kaze-sama?"

When he came back, bloodied and bruised and only slightly calmer, she turned and stared at him with tired eyes. She opened her arms, her face starting to twist. He fell into them, exhausted. So much physical labor had lulled him into a deep sleep that he was sure not to dream in. Fuu could not say the same.

She maneuvered him to the bed, tossing him down roughly because it was the only way she knew how to move something that heavy. She wept over his still body for a minute before drying her eyes.

Wiping her damp cheeks on Mugen's rough red haori, she pushed herself up and dragged herself outside. Picking up a smooth piece from the driftwood pile beside her house, Fuu dug a grave full of remorse, right next to her father's. Her high keening sounded like the wind whistling through the cracks in the walls.

Mugen slept deeply through it all.

_And I am nothing of a builder  
But here I dreamt I was an architect _  
_And I built this balustrade  
To keep you home, to keep you safe  
From the outside world  
But the angles and the corners  
Even though my work is unparalleled  
They never seemed to meet  
This structure fell about our feet  
And we were free to go _

---

I just really hate how Fuu eats. Honestly, dried potato? And I know very little about pregnancy, so please forgive my vagueness.

The song was Here I Dreamt I Was an Architect by the Decemberists. I think the song fits Mugen very well, at least from a FuuMu perspective.

I'll get the next chapter out soon enough, I promise!


	3. the crane wife part 3

_And under the boughs unbowed_

_All clothed in a snowy shroud_

_She had no heart so hardened_

_All under the boughs unbowed_

She was young, so young.

That was the first thought that Mugen woke with, that and a discontent girl with a belly too big for her frame curled into a tiny ball at his side. He studied her face for a moment. She still had traces of baby fat in her face, a plumpness in her cheeks that held a certain innocence that broke his heart at that moment. She was so young, what had he done to her?

He slid out of bed silently and put on his geta, grabbing the list and stalking down to the dock to wait for the next ferry.

Fuu slept through it all.

--

When he arrived four days later, he found Fuu remarkably calm, docile and submissive. She accepted him inside without a word, her eyes empty and her voice cool and slow, like a lazy summer tide. She pulled off the straw hat he'd bought to keep the wind out of his eyes, set it neatly next to his geta on the floor of their shack. A wordlessly handed her the sack of provisions, which she accepted with only sigh when she saw what was inside. He had somehow gotten everything on the list for her, and she didn't want to think about where the money had come from. She bowed in front of him and turned to their homely pot over a tiny fire.

He exited the building and returned with three good sized fish, which he cleaned and speared and cooked for himself, letting her eat the meager vegetable soup she'd prepared. They sat in near silence, his crunching and her gentle slurping the only sounds to accompany the crackle of the fire.

When he reached over and pulled the sticks out of her hair, she only bent her head forward so that they would untangle slightly. He brought her chin up and she gave him a faint smile. He pulled her close and mouthed a silent apology into her hair.

When they were in bed later, back to back, she rolled over and placed a tiny hand on his back. He looked behind him to see the moon reflecting off her wet eyes. "I'm so happy Mugen." He rolled towards her and she bent her head into his shoulder, sobbing helplessly. "I'm so happy you came back." He placed a rough hand on her back, wincing when he noticed he could span almost all of it, from shoulder to shoulder, if he spread his fingers. She hiccuped herself to sleep as he whispered sweet nothings into her ear. He would place kisses with his eyelashes on her ear and rub his rough face against her soft cheek.

--

When their baby was born, it was barely alive. Fuu was exhausted, barely breathing from the labor, and the midwife was rubbing the little thing on it's chest, holding up it's limp form to pat at it's back until it took a deep breath and gave a thin wail. Fuu was too weak to hold it in her arms, so Mugen sat behind her and held their son up to his mother's bosom.

Mugen couldn't tear his eyes away from the little bundle, all of his attention focused on their son's mouth and the shallow breaths of Fuu.

--

She was still half asleep and half dead when she gave the name for their son. "Yukimaru." was the biggest breath Mugen had seen her take in days. He would hold the baby up to her chest to feed, and he would prop Fuu's head up to pour vegetable broth down her throat. Her breathing and pulse remained weak, and her little hands and toes were always cold.

He didn't know he had this much patience in him, this much focus. He couldn't get angry, that would upset Fuu, and it would drive him off to those cliffs that whistled to him at night. He had to be there, he had to take care of her. She had to live so she could raise their son. Mugen sat through the dreary work of changing diapers and making food, cleaning the small hut and chopping firewood every day, just to get Fuu well enough to take care of their son. He learned fear through this, that every little rise of her delicate birdbone chest would be her last, that he would be left parent to a son when he had no memories of what a parent was to fall back on. He needed Fuu to tell him what not to do as a father, and he swore to dieties he was sure didn't exist that he would buy them a good house to live in, he would stop wandering and settle down with Fuu. He would keep her happy if the gods would keep her alive.

--

When Jin arrived, Mugen almost wept.

Things got better with a steadier pair of hands to chop the vegetables.

--

Fuu's health came back rapidly after Jin arrived. Mugen took constant care of her while Jin took care of everything else. The strong samurai had come into the little hut with a line of fish over his shoulder to see Fuu with her eyes open, staring up at Mugen, who had long streaks over overdue tears running down his face. He pulled her up and clutched her to him, and it was the most expressive Jin had seen the man since he arrived.

Jin came back hours later to find the couple sweetly nestled together, their son nestled at Fuu's breast.

She looked up and smiled at him, and Jin felt like every sin he'd ever commited had just been forgiven.

--

Yukimaru's health also improved as his mother held him more, played with his chubby fingers and ran her hands through his soft black hair. It already stood up in every direction, a testament to his father. Fuu's laughter echoed off the cliffs more than the wind's wailing did. She pressed her nose to his and when he slept she held him close. Mugen would only watch them and kiss her on the mouth when their son wasn't looking.

--

Mugen and Jin had taken to sparing still, so Mugen could regain his lean muscle that would make him fit to be a bodyguard once more.

The clash of swords and the happy cries of mother and child rang on the northern cape, and everyone was content, if not happy.

But while the leanest and most hungry of assassins had been killed, the government had not forgotten.

Kasumi Seizou's little girl was still at the top of their To Do list.

-----

Crappy update, I know, but I wanted everything to seem as bleak as that situation would feel. I don't think Mugen would feel much of anything at that point, I think he'd just pour all of his energy into keeping Fuu alive. And I was just thinking about that. Didn't the government want Fuu dead? They killed a handful of assassins, not the government. I wanted to bring them back in just to shake things up again a little bit. Anyone up for a trip to Ryukyu:)

Sorry this took so long. I'll be better, I promise.

Lyrics are from The Crane Wife 3 by The Decemberists.


	4. when the war came

_And the war came with a curse and caterwaul_

_and the war came with all the poise of a cannonball_

_and they're picking out a rise by coal and candlelight_

_when the war came, the war came hard_

The night that the wind wailed the worst was when their happy peace was shattered.

Fuu had been sleeping restlessly, Yukimaru tucked neatly against her chest, but even the baby was fidgeting in his sleep. Fuu's arm was tucked protectively around him, and Mugen sat on his half of the bed, silently watching the mother of his child sleep. She had tucked herself as close to Mugen as she could, silently migrating unconsciously towards his warmth. He reached down with one coarse hand, brushing a finger over her smooth cheek and smoothing out her hair.

Jin sat next to the dying fire, his katana propped up against his shoulder. Mugen had one hand on the hilt of his sword and the other gently cradling Fuu's head.

The wind was howling horribly from the cliff, and the sturdy walls of their hut seemed to bow under the force. Mugen and Jin kept their dangerous eyes on the door, and the instant that the wind died, so did two government assassins.

They had tried to burst through the door, but one got a face full of metal geta and the other got a sword through the throat. Jin shook his sword sharply to get the blood off, and Mugen dragged the bodies outside. Fuu was wide awake, her eyes staring at Jin, one hand over her child's mouth.

"How many more." She said, her eyes full of starlight.

Jin shook his head and listened. "None. They thought we'd be unsuspecting and off guard. They only sent two." He reached down and grabbed a slim kunai one of the assassins had dropped. He held it up to the faint light of the moon, and Fuu could see the fine steel glitter. He examined the grip, the blade, anything for some sort of marking. Finding none, he gripped the kunai and threw it at the wall next to the door. It flew true, and quivered when it sunk into the wood.

Mugen walked in moments later, plucking the kunai off of the wall nonchalantly, and sat on the futon. He ran one strong hand over Fuu's head, and she noticed that his hands were free of blood, but smelled of brine. He'd sunk the bodies into the ocean, then. Ignoring her but for the hand on her head, Mugen said, "I searched them, but couldn't really find anything to make them stand out. Poison, daggers, needles, katana, nothing special. Nothing unusual. The government doesn't think much of us anymore, it seems."

Jin was still. "Did you search their bodies for some kind of mark? A tattoo, a brand, a specifically placed scar? They could have been hired thugs, from a yakuza."

Mugen lifted his hand from Fuu's head. "Let's look again." He stood and walked back outside, not looking back at her once. The light whisper of Jin's feet signaled his leaving as well. Fuu wrapped herself tighter in her blanket, and held her child closer to her heart. She heard various thunks of things hitting soft flesh, fabric tearing, metal hitting rock. So he hadn't sunk the bodies, but he had washed his hands. Interesting. Fuu lay still, staring at the door and listening to the outside. She could hear the murmer of Jin and Mugen talking, but heard nothing of what they said.

She didn't move for a long time, until the sky started to turn gold and Yukimaru fussed for his breakfast.

Three days later, Jin and Mugen still weren't talking much and both were still on edge. Mugen had taking to strapping his son to his back when he went fishing, and Jin rarely left Fuu's line of sight. She pretended everything was normal, and cooked and cleaned and took care of Yukimaru, but he was a quiet baby nowadays and she couldn't say she was much better.

Which was why she was half relieved and half terrified when she saw Hana coming up the hill to the house. Fuu hadn't seen any of the villagers since her pregnancy, and Hana only a few days before Yuki was born. The girl had her head down and her shoulders hunched, like she was trying to be smaller, and her pace was quick to the point of being almost panicked. Fuu needed to see another female face, but she really doubted this one was going to be the bearer of good news.

And she was right. When Hana came up to the house, disheveled and out of breath, Fuu had gone to greet her. The first words out of Hana's mouth were, "You must leave this place."

Fuu pulled back, alarmed. Hana's face was streaked with dirt, and the coarse fabric of her kimono was worn. Fuu said uncertainly, "Hana-sama...why? This is the only place I have! There is nowhere left for me to go!"

Hana's face became pinched, and she grabbed Fuu's shoulders. "The villagers grow restless. The government sends people to ask questions, to search homes, and several people have already been taken into custody! The women who helped you, gave you food, their families have been driven from the island. I escaped, I ran. Fuu-chan, they're going to come up here, and they mean to kill you." Her eyes flickered to the hut, where Mugen stood in the shadow, holding his son protectively against his chest. "And your son."

Mugen's face was hard, and he came out of the hut with his sword in one hand and his child cradled against his shoulder with the other. "How much did they pay you." He stepped forward.

Hana went still, her eyes wide, and she gripped Fuu's kimono a little tighter. "I...don't know what you mean, I ran, my father was going to disown me so I ran...!"

Jin stepped out from behind Mugen and said quietly, "So why do I hear so many mon in your pocket?"

Hana took a step back and looked around her, sadly. "They said you wouldn't come to any harm, they just wanted me to take you to them like I was going to help you escape..."

Mugen moved so fast he was a blur against her throat. "Where, when, and who." She gasped and struggled, a thin line of blood trickling down the pale line of her neck. She looked over to Fuu, who was wearing such an expression of betrayal that Hana had to look away again. Yukimaru cooed against Mugen's shoulder, and he said dangerously, "You would sell my son to his death. He's only a few months old, you would kill an infant for..." He sliced open her kimono, and a bag of golden mon fell out, spilling onto the dirt. He studied it for a moment, and looked back at her. "You would send my son to his death for fifty mon. I would charge at least two hundred for the death of a child."

And then Hana spoke no more. She dropped like a stone, holding her bleeding throat, trying to choke out words through her ruined windpipe. She bled out in three minutes, and Mugen pushed her over and took the mon out from under her dead body.

He looked over at Jin. "We've got to go. Now."

Jin nodded. "If they paid her, their waiting. Probably in the town, definitely on the water, and congregating in Nagasaki." He sheathed his blade and went to see what else was salvageable off of Hana's corpse.

Mugen shook his blade and sheathed it quickly, grabbing Fuu by the wrist and dragging her inside. She said urgently, "Mugen, what are we going to do? We can't stay here, and there's nowhere else to go..." He pushed Yukimaru into her arms, and handed her the sling that he used to tie the baby to his back.

"Secure him to you. No matter what, don't lose our son. I thought something like this might happen, so I stole a boat from one of the local fishermen. He lived alone, and wasn't missed. I swam onto his boat, slit his throat, and took it back over to the church. I hid it there, for when this happened."

He was piling their things into the fish basket, all of their dried fish, potato skins, pouches of water. He pulled out her pink kimono and shoved it in there as well, even though she only wore the orange one these days. The pink one reminded her too much of before, of being alone, of being...afraid. But Mugen was with her now, and nothing would happen.

He stopped what he was doing and stared at her. "What, are you stupid again? Come on, we're leaving now! Get Yuki on your back!"

She shook herself into working and quickly tied the baby onto her back. Mugen strapped the full basket across his chest, and when they came outside, Hana's body was not to be found. Jin, however, had a small sack of things, and it looked suspiciously like Hana's kimono. Mugen jerked his head to the side and Jin nodded, and they began their descent to the church.

Fuu slipped twice on the slippery rocks coming down, and Mugen caught her each time. Silent, strong, he pushed her back into place and they kept going down.

Jin and Mugen pushed the modest fishing boat into the water, and Mugen helped Fuu get inside. He stuffed her below deck, with the provisions, and he and Jin went to get the boat sailing. Mugen spoke loud enough for her to be able to hear. "We won't go to Nagasaki. We'll go south, they aren't expecting us there. People may have forgotten what we look like, we might be able to go back. And if the mainland isn't safe enough, well, there's always..."

And Fuu finished his sentence in a whisper. "Ryukyu." And she peaked her head on deck to watch her last home get further and further from her grasp.

---

Wow, I haven't updated in...a really long time. Sorry about that, but now it's summer break and I'll try my hardest to write more frequently.


	5. the tain

_in this place called heavenly  
you were born here.  
this place called heavenly  
you were born here.  
you were born here. _

Mugen proved to be an adept sailor and captain. Jin, with his calm exterior and deft hands, was adequate at taking instruction. Fuu cleaned and cooked, doing her best to entertain Yukimaru. She and Mugen slept together during the night in a wide hammock, after Jin had learned enough to man the boat on his own. Yukimaru was tucked into a makeshift cradle next to the bed, where he stayed most of the days and nights. Jin would sleep during the day, refusing the hammock and bunking down on the floor.

Fuu often came down to look at him with compassion in her eyes. She had been softer on Jin than on Mugen during their journey, and she never really knew if he had honestly forgiven her for that night with Mugen. Even now, on a tiny boat together, they were oceans apart. His meager possessions were neatly tucked out of sight in a spare coil of rope, his dining utensils and bathing supplies were always separate from Mugen and Fuu's messy pile. He guided the boat during the silent night, ate the meals she prepared for him after she'd gone to sleep, bathed separately, rarely spoke to them and never looked at Yuki. Fuu could do nothing but wait for him to make the first move.

Yukimaru was a constant joy to her. The tiny baby proved to bring out her tenderest, most gentle elements of her personality. Still undersized, he slept much of the time, and was eating for the time he was awake. His large dark eyes would sometimes watch the small blue waves with wonder, and he seemed to like the shine and sparkle of fish scales. He would smile and wave his chubby little hands slowly. Young and fragile as he was, he was constantly tired, even when he was nursing. Lazy, was what Mugen labeled him.

In the months that they sailed on the ocean, they never came close to another boat. They would sometimes see a dark silhouette on the horizon, but none ever hailed them. Jin would shake his head when posed with the question of ever having seen other boat take interest in them. Fuu worried about the distinctive red of Mugen's haori, and often made him go without in on deck, leaving him in his baggy white undershirt. She convinced Jin to let down his waist-length hair, tying the ends together at the small of his back to help obscure the eye-catching white of his delicate face and neck. If her hands lingered too long on his silky head, they pretended not to notice. Fuu had only the option of her pink kimono, now more of a pale red with age and wear.

Their lives continued in that pattern for half a year before Mugen deemed it safe for them to find land. Two more weeks of delicate navigation landed them in Hokkaido, the northernmost part of Japan. Fuu, cold and annoyed with Yuki strapped to her back, clasped the arm of the tired Jin as they pulled up to port. Using the mon from Hana, Mugen negotiated the price of their short stay and the discretion of the porter. Nodding at him, the three of them quickly made their way into the center of the city. Efficiently, Mugen negotiated new clothes for Fuu and Yuki and repairs of Jin's and his own clothes. They picked up new rations and a few simple wooden toys for Yukimaru.

Fuu was following behind the men, holding her son and a few of the smaller packages, when she saw her weakness: a dumpling stand. Jogging up to Jin and Mugen, she jumped in between them and linked their arms with one of hers.

"Jin-san! Mugen! I found a dumpling stand!" Her eyes bright with cold and hunger, they could only react one way.

"Augh-what the hell?! New clothes aren't enough for you, you want FOOD too?! And something so pathetic as dumplings, how is THAT actually going to feed you?" Mugen complained, sneering at her and gesturing dramatically.

"Of course, Fuu-san, but perhaps if you are hungry, we should eat something more substantial..." Jin waved in the direction of a restaurant, brightly lit with many patrons entering and exiting. The sounds of laughing and the clinking of chopsticks against plates and bowls drifted towards them.

Pouting for an instant, furrowing her brows at both of them, she looked between the small dumpling stand and the warm, inviting restaurant. Yukimaru started to fuss in her arms, waving his chubby fists back and forth. Rubbing a hand through his ever unruly hair, she sighed. "The restaurant looks like it COULD have good food...and I think Yuki wants to get out of the cold." She kissed the squirming child's head quickly.

The evening passed quickly, filled with delicious food and, for the first time in a long time, relaxed conversation. Jin and Mugen took turns entertaining Yukimaru. The little baby gathered attention from patrons, finding many fans in all of the ladies and some of the grandfatherly men. The little boy's shy smile and happy eyes made Fuu cuddle him close and kiss his little hands.

Walking back to the boat, they were all relaxed, though Jin grew more withdrawn. Coming to the dock, Jin grew cautious and tense. Raising his hand, he looked back at Mugen. Tilting his head up, he regarded the other man silently. Mugen glanced toward their boat and then back at Jin. Nodding his head towards Fuu, he slipped off his geta and silently walked toward the boat. Jin pulled Fuu closer to him, pressing a slim hand against Yuki's head. He placed the other hand on the hilt of his katana and waited.

A few scuffling sounds emerged from the boat, the flash of a sword by moonlight and the splash of a body being dumped made Fuu clutch her son tighter to her. Mugen popped his head out and growled, "Come on, you idiots, we don't have all night! There might be more."

Clutching onto Fuu's shoulders, he hurried them onto the boat. "From the government?"

Mugen's grim face was their answer.

Days later, the Mugen broke the tense silence that had settled over their living space. He caught Jin before he went to bed, and after he and Fuu had woken up. He pulled them all onto the deck, lit by the pale dawn.

"They're still looking for us. Or, more specifically, her." Mugen nodded his fluffy head at Fuu. "I plan on going to Ryukyu, but I don't know if that will keep them at bay for long."

Jin nodded his ascent. "Ryukyu would be the best place to discourage them from looking for us. On the other hand, it might be the first place they look. They could have someone stationed there now. The government's ships next to this one...well...they wouldn't have to fight hard. And even if we did make it, I don't think it's the best environment for Yuki to grow up in." His monotone voice became a little stronger on the last few sentences.

Fuu, for once, kept silent. She looked down into the cabin, where Yuki still slept soundly. Pulling her clothing closer around her, she turned out the face the golden sea.

Mugen and Jin looked at her expectantly. Sighing, she shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know the best plan of action. I'll do the best I can to protect Yuki, but as to where we should live...we left the only home I knew of a long time ago."

Jin went to bed after that, and Mugen took to the helm.

Not long after that, they set sail for Ryukyu. "I know some uninhabited islands." Mugen gruffed. "They won't find us there, and we can make a living. Change what the boat looks like."

Fuu nodded. "I suppose that's our only option." Her voice was small and sad. She remembered the warm smell of the sunflower fields on Ikitsuki island, her cozy shack and the women that were, if not friends, at least reliable. The fresh air, the vegetables, the space...

At least the island would be bigger than the boat. She hoped.

---

Ha ha ha...haaaaaa. It's been like three years since I updated this. I'm really sorry, and this chapter provides little to no resolution. You know how life goes. I'm planning one more chapter after this, and I've even made a Facebook fan page for you guys to bug me until I finish my stories. The link is in my author profile. Please go there and leave me messages! Provide links to music/pictures/writing that you think will inspire me! I'll post little snippets or one shots, and may even take requests for stories. The next chapter should wrap this whole story up in a nice, neat package.


	6. AN: red right ankle

_I'm so sorry for how painfully stupid that chapter was. Believe me, I winced when I read it too. If you haven't yet, don't worry. You aren't missing out on anything. Well, maybe a good laugh at my lack of ability._

_I'm fixing it now, and the new chapter should be up later this evening._


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